Immigration Newsletter

Thursday, January 31, 2013

There are a bunch more tables and lots of information to see at http://www.migrationinformation.org/datahub/acscensus.cfmNotes:
1. This table describes the entire population of New Hampshire.
2. For 1990, 2000, and 2011, the total for the region of birth of the foreign born is different from
the total foreign born. This is because the 1990 total excludes those who did not report a country of birth and those born at sea, while the 2000 and 2011 totals exclude those born at sea. In 2000 and 2011, individuals who did not report a country of birth were allocated a country (and region) based on various characteristics. Because of this allocation in 2000 and 2011, but not in 1990, the increase for a specific region between 1990 and
2000 is overstated by a small, but unknown, amount.Sources: US Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey (ACS); US Census Bureau, 1990 Census of
Population and Housing and Census 2000,
click here.
For information about ACS methodology, sampling error, and nonsampling
error, click
here.

Table 2.
Characteristics of the Foreign-Born Population in New Hampshire,
20111

Here is a sample of what can be found at the Migration Policy Institute website -- check it out lots more interesting information about New Hampshire and all of the states.
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Notes:

1. This table describes the entire population of New Hampshire.

2. For 1990, 2000, and 2011, the total for the region of birth of the foreign born is different from
the total foreign born. This is because the 1990 total excludes those who did not report a country of birth and those born at sea, while the 2000 and 2011 totals exclude those born at sea. In 2000 and 2011, individuals who did not report a country of birth were allocated a country (and region) based on various characteristics. Because of this allocation in 2000 and 2011, but not in 1990, the increase for a specific region between 1990 and
2000 is overstated by a small, but unknown, amount.

Sources: US Census Bureau, 2011 American Community Survey (ACS); US Census Bureau, 1990 Census of
Population and Housing and Census 2000, click here.

Monday, January 28, 2013

Published: January 28, 2013

A bipartisan group of senators has agreed on a set of principles for a sweeping overhaul of the immigration system, including a pathway to American citizenship for 11 million illegal immigrants that would hinge on progress in securing the borders and ensuring that foreigners leave the country when their visas expire.

The senators were able to reach a deal by incorporating the Democrats’ insistence on a single comprehensive bill that would not deny eventual citizenship to illegal immigrants, with Republican demands that strong border and interior enforcement had to be clearly in place before Congress could consider legal status for illegal immigrants.

Their blueprint, set to be unveiled on Monday, will allow them to stake out their position one day before President Obama outlines his immigration proposals in a speech on Tuesday in Las Vegas, in the opening moves of what lawmakers expect will be a protracted and contentious debate in Congress this year.

Lawmakers said they were optimistic that the political mood had changed since a similar effort collapsed in acrimony in 2010. Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona and one of the negotiators, said he saw “a new appreciation” among Republicans of the need for an overhaul.

“Look at the last election,” Mr. McCain said Sunday morning on ABC’s “This Week With George Stephanopoulos.” “We are losing dramatically the Hispanic vote, which we think should be ours.” The senator also said he had seen “significant improvements” in border enforcement, although “we’ve still got a ways to go.”

We recognize that our immigration system is broken. And while border security has improved significantly over the last two Administrations, we still don't have a functioning immigration system. This has created a situation where up to 11 million undocumented immigrants are living in the shadows. Our legislation acknowledges these realities by finally committing the resources needed to secure the border, modernize and streamline our current legal immigration system, while creating a tough but fair legalization program for individuals who are currently here. We will ensure that this is a successful permanent reform to our immigration system that will not need to be revisited.

Four Basic Legislative Pillars:

1. Create a tough but fair path to citizenship for unauthorized immigrants currently living in the United States that is contingent upon securing our borders and tracking whether legal immigrants have left the country when required;

2. Reform our legal immigration system to better recognize the importance of characteristics that will help build the American economy and strengthen American families;

3. Create an effective employment verification system that will prevent identity theft and end the hiring of future unauthorized workers; and,

Friday, January 25, 2013

The nation's capital is awash with ideas about how to fix America's immigration policy. The sudden ferment on this issue, which was largely dormant since efforts at comprehensive reform were torpedoed five years ago, is as welcome as it is overdue. The growing consensus on both sides of the political aisle that something needs to be done should not be squandered, for such opportunities are rare and fleeting.

Some policy makers are calling for piecemeal changes—such as issuing visas for high-skilled workers and investors, or conferring legal status on immigrants who were illegally brought into the country as children. Congress should avoid such quick fixes and commit itself instead to comprehensive immigration reform.

In some conservative circles, the word "comprehensive" in the context of immigration reform is an epithet—a code word for amnesty. People who oppose such reform declare that securing the United States border must come before moving toward broader reform.

Such an approach is shortsighted and self-defeating. Border security is inextricably intertwined with other aspects of immigration policy. The best way to prevent illegal immigration is to make sure that we have a fair and workable system of legal immigration. The current immigration system is neither.

The immigration system is like a jigsaw puzzle. If one or more pieces are out of whack, the puzzle makes no sense. To fix the system, Congress must make sure all of the pieces fit together, logically and snugly....

Essentially, the gist of the article is that a critical mass is beginning to form in support of immigration reform. Labor and Management, Liberal and Conservative, Republican and Democrat. Elections have consequences.

Attorney Randall Drew also has a twitter account and we have another blog called: New Hampshire Immigration Lawyer Blog so one way or another -- when Comprehensive Immigration Reform passes Congress -- Drew Law Office, PLLC will get the word out in New Hampshire and beyond.

Thursday, January 17, 2013

Participants in a protest against Alabama’s HB-56 march through Linn Park on June 25, 2011, in Birmingham, Ala. (AP Photo/ The Birmingham News, Mark Almond)

Senior Administration officials told The New York Times this week that President Obama intends to move an “ambitious” and comprehensive push for immigration reform through Congress in the coming months. Four years ago, it was a very different situation. Progressive groups—dizzy from the win of the first African-American president and his preacher’s call for change—had a long list of competing priorities for the president, with the economy and health care winning out. Understanding how immigration reform “earned” its way to the top of the progressive agenda should shape the movement’s strategy in the coming months.

Two major changes have taken place. First, the movement has grown in numbers and matured in sophistication, generating a new collective urgency among liberals on this issue. Second, the combination of demographic change and growing immigrant power have challenged Republicans, in particular, to get behind reform. How well the movement optimizes these trends will be key to getting the best reform possible and capitalizing on the unprecedented opportunity to win immigration reform in 2013.

click the link above to see the rest of the article on COLORLINES.

I am really hoping that we get some reform this year. When it happens we will note it here and on the Law Firm website: www.drewpllc.com

RALEIGH, N.C. — The state Attorney General's Office has determined that people who were brought to the U.S. illegally as children are entitled to a North Carolina driver's license if they meet all other requirements.

The Division of Motor Vehicles last week canceled the licenses of 13 people who have applied to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, saying they wanted a legal opinion from the Attorney General's Office on whether issuing the licenses would violate state law.

The DACA program blocks deportation of and grants work permits to immigrants brought to the United States as minors without authorization. North Carolina typically grants driver's licenses to non-citizens with valid federal work papers.

"We believe that individuals who present documentation demonstrating a grant of deferred action by the United States government are legally present in the United States and entitled to a driver's license of limited duration, assuming all other criteria are met," Chief Deputy Attorney General Grayson Kelley wrote in a letter Thursday to DMV Acting Commissioner Eric Boyette.

"This conclusion should not be construed to suggest that individuals granted deferred status under the DACA program have 'lawful status' in the United States," Kelley wrote. "Deferred status ... is a grant of permission to remain in the country for a specified period of time without receiving formal immigration status. The grant of deferred status therefore establishes lawful presence for the period of deferment."

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